News Briefs

The U.S. Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory trained Marines--for the first time ever--using multiple unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) in a convoy. Seven Marines were trained on the Oshkosh Corporation's UGV, which uses the company's TerraMax technology to operate autonomously.

The U.S. Army's System of Systems Integration Directorate (SoSI) is seeking participants for the Network Integration Evaluation (NIE) 13.2 event, which is scheduled to take place at Fort Bliss and White Sands Missile Range in May 2013. Only mature solutions that focus on SoSI-identified network gaps will be considered.

On Wednesday, the Defense Department (DOD) issued its long-awaited cloud computing strategy. Officials also announced in a memo from Teri Takai, chief information officer for the DOD, that the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) will oversee the new strategy as "enterprise cloud service broker."

Materials researchers at the Sandia National Laboratories have developed a new class of nanoporous materials that could lead to more effective and less costly radiation detectors for homeland security inspectors. The new material works with plastic scintillators to make them glow brightly in the presence of charged particles or high-energy photons. Sandia officials say though more work is needed, they are currently seeking commercial partners to license the technology.

The Graph500 executive committee has announced specifications that will better represent ways to rate the large-scale data analytics that are key to high-performance computing. This single-source, shortest-path specification to assess computing performance will measure the closest distance between selected items.

Sandia National Laboratories is actively seeking partners to conduct research in the newly opened Cybersecurity Technologies Research Laboratory (CTRL). The CTRL offers the capability to run experiments and freely discuss a wide range of cyber research issues.

Federal agencies and emergency response organizations are invited to challenge one company to solve their most difficult remote communications and interoperability problems. RapydConnex will award free technology assessments and the scope of preliminary solutions to qualifying entrants

The Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) Masters Competition is now open. Contestants in any one or all of this year's seven challenges must submit their concepts of best services, business cases and applications for GMES satellite data.

The U.S. Defense Department has revamped its Telework Program for the civilian work force. Leaders at each Defense Department component now are required to promote telework within their organizations and to take all possible steps to overcome artificial barriers to program implementation.

The Multifunctional Information Distribution System (MIDS) Joint Tactical Radio System (JTRS) has been approved for full production and fielding. The MIDS JTRS is a software-based terminal that provides interoperable and secure tactical datalinks and programmable networking capabilities.

The U.S. State Department hosted TechCamp Bangkok in the city of the same name on March 20 and 21. More than 60 civil society leaders from throughout Thailand came together for hands-on training in areas such as social media, online organization, digital safety and mobile applications.

If your job depends on staying up-to-date on the latest from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), there's a mobile app for your iPhone or iPad. The free app, available through the iTunes store, provides access to new reports, testimony, video and podcasts. GAO representatives say the agency plans to release a similar app for Android smartphones and tablets in the next several months

Teaming with researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford University, the APIC Corporation recently announced a scientific breakthrough that could lead to computer chips powered by light pulses rather than electronics.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency, part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, is looking for the next members of its National Advisory Council (NAC). The NAC provides external guidance on issues ranging from terrorist response to federal preparedness.

The British Ministry of Defence recently announced plans to develop a Royal Navy missile defense system, known as Sea Ceptor, capable of intercepting and destroying enemy missiles traveling at supersonic speeds. The £483 million ($761.3 million) contract to develop the system will be awarded to a U.K. company.